Birth of Princess Mononoke
by Falconcry
Summary: My origin story for Princess Mononoke. Please review, because this is a first for me!


_This takes place before the actual events that happen in "Princess Mononoke". Enjoy! _

There was a bite to the cool autumn wind as it whispered through the trees of the forest. The glittering starscape above twinkled like jewels and nothing stirred, not even the rustle of a field mouse could be heard. The woods were sleeping, listening as the wind sailed over the plains just beyond the tree line, creating a rippling wake in the grasses. The full moon shone in full splendor, washing the countryside in white.

Suddenly, a flash of silver raced through the dark shadow of the trees, and then it was gone. Then again, a few yards later, a soundless ghostly creature that's paws drummed noiselessly over the soft earthen forest floor. Her black nose drank in deeply the scents of the forest, a cool lush warmness that flowed thorough her body. Moro had always loved to run in the woods late at night, midnight was a favorable time for her.

Her silvery pelt glistened in the moonlight, the luscious fur thick and warm against the chill in the air. The great wolf's pale yellow eyes calmly swept over the tranquil landscape, taking in the nighttime sights and sounds. She dwelt in one of the last great forests; the humans had destroyed most of the others. Moro loved this season, although her stoic expression did not show it, the turning of the millions of leaves from emerald green to explosive shades of red, orange and yellow reminded her of how blessed this land was, and how hard she had fought to keep it.

The humans had stripped bare the neighboring mountains of their forests and were now preying on these ones, but she and the other forest gods refused to yield it to the human's greedy hands. They were a savage race, one day living harmoniously then the next stabbing each other in the backs. Moro flicked her dual tails, dismissing the thought. She would not think about them right now, this was a time for her and her alone. Especially since she was now with pup, her stomach was swollen with life.

Moro had needed no mate to reproduce, she was a god, and only had to ask the Deer God for his blessing of life. She had finally gotten it, and now the pups were due any day now. Suddenly her head snapped up, ears pricked as she listened intently. Someone was moving, about a quarter mile east from her position. Whoever it was, they moved with cumbersome grace, snapping branches and lurching noisily along. The stench reached her, and she curled her lip in disgust. Humans.

So, they had finally stooped so low as to resort to damaging the forest at night. If they thought that the woods were unguarded when the sun fell, they were dead wrong. Bunching her hind legs, she sprang into an easy lope through the trees towards the intruders, eager to show them their mistake of crossing into her forest. Moro was in her prime, a muscle-bound bolt of molten silver, an unstoppable force of nature that was going to defend her home at all costs. She slowed herself to a trot, then to a walk as she approached stealthily. The humans were cutting down the great trees that had taken root centuries before they were born, and each swing of the ax, each new scar on the tree's flesh made Moro all the more angry. Her pelt stood on end and her muscles stiffened as she prepared to attack the band. No one harmed the forest while she was around.

With a roar that was bellowed from the deepest recesses of hate for the humans, the great wolf sprung from the bushes and into the crowd. The humans froze for a moment in horror as Moro charged at them with jaws opened wide, showing razor white fangs, her eyes ablaze with fury. She felled two with a snap of her jaws, tasting the sweet blood seep onto her tongue, and lusted for more. They began to scatter now, screaming as they ran. The cowards, she thought with distain. A young woman with braided brown hair was running in panic, abandoning her cooking gear and sprinting alongside her husband.

The thrill of the chase sized Moro, and she lunged after them. Another man meet fate with her fangs, and she howled the pure ecstasy that flowed through her. The woman, her husband, and two others were still alive. Moro noticed something strapped to the woman's back, bouncing along with each panicked stride. The wolf smelled life inside of the bundle, but it was somehow different than the rest of the humans.

This puzzled Moro. But she did not have to ponder long, for the husband tore the bundle from his wife's shoulders. The woman screamed in protest and tried to grab it back, but the man held it away from her, saying in despite tones, "It's the only way!" Than the man turned to the charging wolf, and flung the bundle at her. Moro tried to skid to a halt, but her massive paws slipped in the wet grass, so she used her claws to slow herself down.

"O great Moro, wolf god of the forest," the man stammered, bowing briefly. "Take this life as a sacrifice, and chase us no more." With that, he grabbed his sobbing wife by the arms and he half-ran, half-dragged her away. Moro sat on her haunches as she stared in wonder at the little bundle lying before her in the grass. Why had the man thrown it at her, and what was it exactly? Curious, the wolf nudged it with her big black nose. The coverings unwrapped a little, and she snorted in surprise.

It was a human pup, fast asleep in the blankets. She looked very young, probably only a few days old. Her soft skin felt tender to the wolf's searching nose as she snuffed the pup all over. It was a human, and Moro knew she should've killed it, but it was a different life. Not corrupt like the humans she had chased, but pure and untouched by human greed and madness. The wolf smelled potential and spirit within the young pup, and knew that she was different.

Moro gently used her jaws and looped the shoulder straps through her teeth, and walked back to the forest. The pup was still sleeping as the great wolf bounded swiftly through the trees and to her den. The human was a female, and Moro would teach her the ways of the wolf, how to disappear in the forest, how to hunt and track, how to run with the midnight wind, and how to howl to the spirits. She would be her princess, her Princess Mononoke.


End file.
